The PWHL Minnesota team came in tonight with points in all five of the games that they’ve played so far this season. They were at the top of the PWHL rankings. But this game was a bit wacky. Minnesota was putting pucks on the net but couldn’t score. Montreal, on the other hand, couldn’t stay out of the penalty box. As Head Coach Ken Klee said in the postgame press conference, “We had plenty of chances to win the game.” But somehow, Montreal pulled off a win.
Quick Recap
Final Score: 2-1 Montreal
PIMS: 14 minutes combined
Shots on goal: 22-42 Minnesota
Notable Moments: Montreal’s’ Goalie Stands on Her Head, Power Play Shoots But Can’t’ Score
Vibes Report: 9/10, but PWHL games hit differently, and the vibes are always good!
After a lot of North-South play to start the game, Montreal was the first on the board. Laura Stacey scored at 4:12 with assists by Tereza Vanišová and Brigitte Laganière. After being hemmed into their zone that resulted in a goal for Montreal, Minnesota made several great plays to put a few more shots on goal.
Minnesota seemed disconnected in the first period, with turnovers in the neutral zone and sloppy passes. Taylor Heise had a few good attempts to set up scoring chances, but they just weren’t coming together. After a pass across the crease to no one, she missed a wide-open net in what would have been a spectacular goal.
But the players weren’t’ shying away from the bad plays. Kendall Coyne Schofield said, “I think it’s’ just connecting. I got a puck in the middle from Taylor there and didn’t connect on it…We gotta figure it out because that’s how you win and lose hockey games, and this is an example of us losing one.”
After Montreal scored and Minnesota had a few disjointed shots on goal, Montreal kept Minnesota in their defensive zone. Minnesota ended the first with nine shots on goal but couldn’t quite finish, going into the break down 1-0.
The second period started with more of an offensive push by Minnesota, keeping Montreal in their zone. Klee said that he ” really liked our second and third periods. We really picked up our game, picked up moving our feet.” After the first power play ended without a goal, Emma Greco managed to draw a penalty when Ann-Sophie Bettez tripped her in the blue paint. It looked like Minnesota would have better luck setting up their power play, but it was quickly disrupted by Montreal. While they struggled to try and put something back together, Montreal managed to once again kill their penalty.
Finally, at 11:51 in the second period, Minnesota was able to get on the scoreboard. Michaela Cava scored her first goal of the season on a second-chance rebound that resulted from a shot on goal from Liz Schepers. Sophia Kunin also assisted on the play.
The second period ended in a 1-1 tie. Minnesota made more of an offensive push during the second, tallying 20 out of the 29 total shots to that point during the second period.
The third period started with equal pressure from both teams, but 3:25 into the period, Minnesota went on their third power play when Sarah Bujold went to the penalty box for holding. Unfortunately, Heise took a tripping penalty only 29 seconds in, negating the rest of their power play. At the end of both penalties, the score was still tied at 1-1.
The crowd was quiet halfway through the third as the score was still tied, and tensions were rising. The crowd got back into the spirit when Montreal’s’ Vanisova went to the box for tripping Mellissa Channell behind Minnesota’s’ net. Montreal killed off the penalty and Vanisova was only too happy to score her first goal of the season after being sprung from the box, putting Montreal up 2-1.
Minnesota had five missed power play opportunities. A frustrated Klee said, “We go through the crease. I mean, we’re right there. It’s’ not like we’re not getting good looks.” He mentioned that he watches the footage after every game, and the power play has opportunities they’re’ just not able to take advantage of.
Montreal’s’ goalie, Elaine Chuli, stopped 41 out of 42 shots on net. About the high number of shots on goal, Klee said “normally, we do that; we’re scoring three goals. Their goalie played well, and we just didn’t capitalize on our opportunities.” At the same time, Minnesota goalie Nicole Hensley admitted that she “wasn’t’ assertive enough.”
Summing up Minnesota’s first regulation loss, Schofield said, “That’s the beauty of making mistakes: you get to learn from it. And it is still early, but every game matters, every point matters. So that’s what’s tough about a loss.”
Minnesota plays back-to-back with Boston on 1/27 and New York on 1/28. Their next home game is on 2/14 against Ottawa.
Vibes Recap
VIbes in PWHL games are different from NHL games. Everyone is so excited about the new league that the vibe is super positive. There are lots of girls hockey teams that are all sitting together in their matching jerseys and many are probably watching professional women’s’ hockey for the first time. There’s’ lots of singing and dancing. While Wild games tend to have a sort of intense, almost aggressive feel, the PWHL game had a more party-like vibe, especially during the commercial breaks.
One great thing is that the State of Hockey continues to draw a crowd. While critics claim that no one watches women’s sports, the PWHL managed to draw out 5,001 fans on a Wednesday night. That’s a great attendance that is sure to go up as the league continues to find it’s feet.
